Champion Chess vs ChessUp
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Champion Chess
Compete in virtual chess tournaments, progressing from local to international levels against diverse AI opponents. Prepare with practice games and aim to qualify for the ultimate Championship. Developed by Chess.com enthusiasts.
- Progressive tournament structure
- Multiple AI difficulty levels
- Over 60 AI personalities
- Practice game mode
- Qualify for championship
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Can you become the World Chess Champion? Find out as you join local, then regional, then international tournaments with virtual opponents on your way to the Championship! - Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert, and Master levels - Play with more than 60 different virtual AI personalities - Practice games let you prepare for the main event - Participate in bigger and bigger tournaments as you try to qualify for the championship Brought to you by the chess fans and developers of Chess.com! ----------------------------------------------------- Also available in the app: Unlimited Pass Enjoy all Champion Chess features - unlimited! $2.99/month ** TERMS & DETAILS ** Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. The account will be charged the same amount for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage your subscription and turn off auto-renewal by going to your Account Settings after purchase. * Prices may vary by location. Terms of Use: https://www.chess.com/legal/user-agreement ----------------------------------------------------- ABOUT CHESS.COM Chess.com is built by chess players and enthusiasts who really love chess! Team: http://www.chess.com/about Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/chess Twitter: http://twitter.com/chesscom YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/wwwchesscom TwitchTV: http://www.twitch.com/chess
ChessUp
This app enhances your chess experience with a smart chessboard. It offers game archives, analysis, and live AI assistance. Connect to play remote opponents on various platforms.
- Chess game archives
- Game analysis
- Live AI assistance
- Remote opponent play
- BLE connectivity
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ChessUp is a companion app for the ChessUp smart chessboard. The app provides chess game archives and analysis. The app can link with the chessboard over BLE to provide live Ai assistance. The app can also provide an internet connection for the board in order to play remote chess opponents on various chess platforms.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ChessUp at none against Champion Chess's 1. ChessUp also leads on ads (none vs shown). Champion Chess's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 16). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Champion Chess sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $2.99 per month. ChessUp asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Champion Chess against 4.8 for ChessUp. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.5K and 2.8K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 47% of Champion Chess's written reviews are positive against 54% of ChessUp's.
Champion Chess ships an update monthly, ChessUp every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on November 3, 2026.
| Parameter | Champion Chess | ChessUp |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (1.5K ratings) | 4.8 (2.8K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 47.3% of reviews | 54.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.5K | 2.8K — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 16 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 504 MB | 218 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chess.com, LLC | Bryght Labs Inc. |
Customer experience
Champion Chess
ChessUp
User reviews
Champion Chess
From 1.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Fun game to play
- 💡 Sophisticated enough to challenge amateur players
- 🚀 Great graphics and animations
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bugs and glitches causing crashes or freezes
- 🤔 Confusing piece identification, especially on crowded boards
- 🤖 AI too strong, making it difficult to win
- ⚠️ Frequent draws declared even when checkmate is possible
ChessUp
From 2.8K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great app and board
- 👍 Fantastic board to learn and improve game
- 🚀 Awesome chess experience
- 👍 Wonderful app
- 👍 Incredible learning tool
Room to improve
- 🐛 Lots of bugs and glitches
- 🐛 Crashes and connectivity issues
- 🐛 Misleading marketing and unfinished product
- 🐛 Haptics issues and unresponsive interface
- 🐛 AI difficulty imbalanced
Bugs and requests
Champion Chess
Reported bugs
3 issues- Rooks unable to move
- Incorrect handling of pawn promotion
- Crashes on launch for some users
Requested features
5 requests- 2D board view option
- Move-by-move game replay
- Ability to save game moves
- Customizable music and sound levels
- Easier way to reset board orientation
ChessUp
Reported bugs
6 issues- Moves not registering
- Bluetooth connectivity issues
- Crashes and freezes
- Sync issues between app and board
- Lessons not working properly
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- Chess.com integration problems
Requested features
5 requests- Add chess openings lessons
- Implement position setup and export/import
- Add post-game review mechanism
- Improve AI difficulty scaling
- Add chess puzzles
In-app purchases
Champion Chess
- Unlimited Pass$2.991 Month
ChessUp
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Champion Chess free?
Is ChessUp free?
Which has better reviews, Champion Chess or ChessUp?
Do Champion Chess or ChessUp have ads?
Which is updated more often, Champion Chess or ChessUp?
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